The Hindu Business Line : Creme de la Cartier

My job is not only to sell Cartier products but to give stature to customers. First time he’ll buy a small piece, then a watch, and then the ‘love’ ring for his girlfriend.

Pervez Bhagat

Not weighty enough: This half-a-milion euro bangle was obviously designed for heavier hands and much deeper pockets. Pervez Bhagat

Rasheeda Bhagat

When you are travelling to Paris with your family that includes two sons aged 28 and 20 on their first visit to Europe, they are hardly likely to be seduced by an invitation to visit the French luxury jeweller Cartier’s oldest and classiest showroom at one of the swankiest addresses in Paris — Rue de la Paix.

But they are somehow persuaded and, clutching the map, we make our way from the Louvre to the Cartier showroom in a record 15 minutes, finding to our utter surprise that recession seems to have hardly dented business or at least the number of customers at this luxury retailer.

But, of course, there is more buzz outside the store than inside; almost every minute a woman stops by the show-window, gazing longingly at the display of a spectacular ‘panther’ necklace, done in sparkling diamonds, dazzling sapphires and an extravagantly huge blob of emerald shimmering between the panther’s paws. “Oh, this one costs around €2.62 million,” says Olaf Van Cleef, Cartier’s High Jewellery Councellor, in answer to my unasked question.

He next shows us a ring made with an unbelievable 18.22 carat diamond with a staggering price tag of €4.5 million and I immediately stop trying to mentally convert the price to INR, deeming it a meaningless exercise anyway.

Even as he relates stories on how recession is a “difficult time” for Cartier’s old customers, but has brought in several new customers — from those owning businesses in the Internet, food, telephones, and so on — he pulls out the Cartier trademark… the triple band, trinity or rolling ring, first made by Louis Cartier in early 20th century for the French poet Jean Cocteau in three interlocking bands of white, yellow and copper-brown gold.

This ring was supposed to evoke the three rings around Saturn. Since then it has almost become a cult jewellery piece and Van Cleef encourages me to try on the trinity ring, also known as “love ring”, this time studded with diamonds and costing €660.

It is surprising to find how snugly the three bands hug the finger, but the next stunning piece he urges me to try on is the triple band bangle studded with sparking diamonds. Carrying a price tag of over half a million euros, it hangs on my wrist, and to my frown, the jeweller responds sternly, “Ladies who can afford to wear such diamond bangles have much larger wrists.”

Cartier’s panthers

Olaf Van Cleef

Sufficiently chastened, one reverts to the recurring panther theme in Cartier designs and learns that Jeanne Toussaint, one of Cartier’s chiefs in the fine jewellery department, came to be affectionately known as ‘panther’ because of her affinity for the big cat — be it in the motifs in her apartment or in her jewellery designs.

But even though Cartier had been using the panther motif in its jewellery from 1915, it became a hallmark for the French iconic jeweller in 1948 when it designed the famous panther brooch for the Duchess of Windsor. The Duchess was fascinated by it and soon ordered other pieces with the panther motif and they became a sensation in the high-society world.

Here is an excerpt from the 1998 issue of the Professional Jeweler Magazine: “Ever a specialty at Cartier, the panther was revitalized in the 1980s when it appeared in a wide variety of jewellery, including watches, earrings, cuff links and new accessories such as pens, handbag clasps and perfume flasks. The panther is now a metaphor for the contemporary woman; sensual and self-assured with an underlying element of danger, hinting that care should be used in handling this exotic creature.”

The Duchess’s jewellery was considered cutting-edge fashion in her time and there’s a story that she had a rather large collarbone and was discreetly advised to wear large necklaces, the designs for which were inspired by the kind Indian maharajas wore!

To her credit she willed all her jewellery to the Pasteur Institute for AIDS research. And the panther brooch which came up for auction was bought back by Cartier.

Indian royalty steps in

Van Cleef shows us an exquisite diamond and emerald necklace made on special order for an Indian customer, who must be special considering its price tag – €1.9 million. Of course, she can’t be named but there is enough presence of Indian royalty in Cartier’s archives and even this showroom.

He explains how in 1911, Queen Alexandra, “then the empress of India”, told Pierre Cartier that while she understood that Cartier worked closely with Russian royal families, do you know that India is not that bad a country? Of course India has only about 150 royal families whereas Russia has about 1,000, but there are problems in Russia. Come to us in India and perhaps India will be good for you.” So the entire Cartier family went to India.

Interestingly, he adds that Cartier was gently told that Indian culture and motifs would have to remain in whatever jewellery it designed and made for Indian royalty, but the setting, finishing, and so on could be European. “So Cartier designed for Indian maharajas very beautiful jewellery with Indian designs, but European style and elegance.”

Also, for the first time it used platinum in Indian jewellery, hitherto made in 24 carat gold “which is rather heavy and not so comfortable to work with. Platinum is very thin, more comfortable to work in and reflects very well the sparkle of diamonds”.

The maharajas of Kapurthala and Patiala among others were prized clients at Cartier and in 1920, Cartier even had a special arrangement with the Maharaja of Patiala to display his jewellery at one of its exhibitions in the US, London and Paris. And then, of course, there is this story of one Maharaja, who shall remain unnamed, who went broke and could no longer shop at Cartier. But he pleaded with the French jeweller to at least give him some Cartier bags, which he could carry around to show the world that he could still shop at Cartier!

But the Cartier bag Van Cleef gave me to carry its little book detailing the history of 13 Rue de la Paix had the opposite effect on me. I carried it around Paris streets warily until I reached my hotel, fearing that the thieves at large on Paris streets, ever on the lookout for gullible tourists, might target my handbag for all the wrong reasons!

Selling dreams

But then, as our friend explained, his job “is not only to sell Cartier products but to give stature to customers. When you see a man with a Mont Blanc pen, you form an impression, even though perhaps he has only that and nothing more. So first time a customer, like your son, might buy a small piece, the second time he might buy a Cartier watch, and the third time the ‘love’ ring for his girlfriend. But slowly he will get entrenched into the system, and dream about buying more expensive jewellery here.”

But the son put a quick end to Van Cleef’s dream by asking him not anything to do with high-end jewellery, or even watches, as we left. All he wanted to know was: “Which is the most happening pub in Paris?”

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No recession at Cartier

More Stories on : Gems & Jewellery | Brands | Rasheeda Bhagat

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